NATO Special Rep. for the Caucasus, Central Asia Meets with Georgian PM, President, FM
Javier Colomina, NATO Secretary-General’s Special Representative for the Caucasus & Central Asia, held separate meetings with Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili and President Salome Zurabishvili today to discuss issues relevant to Georgia-NATO bilateral relations.
The Georgian government’s press service reported that during their discussion, the PM and Special Representative Colomina focused on possible support measures tailored to Georgia that can help it to increase its defense capabilities.
While reviewing Georgia-NATO relations, the two also considered Georgia’s progress toward Euro-Atlantic integration as well as the current agenda of NATO-Georgia relations.
In that context, the discussion made note of NATO’s 2022 Strategic Concept which pledged to continue developing its partnership with Georgia and reaffirmed its 2008 Bucharest Summit decision that the country will eventually become a member of the Alliance.
PM Garibashvili and Special Representative Colomina also talked about the ongoing war in Ukraine and the resulting security environment.
In relation to Georgia, the Georgian PM and NATO Special Representative reviewed the current situation in the occupied regions of Abkhazia and the Tskhinvali region/South Ossetia.
The meeting was attended by Alexander Vinnikov, the Head of the NATO Liaison Office in Georgia, Ilia Darchiashvili, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Viktor Dolidze, the Georgian representative in NATO as well.
Meeting with President
Similarly, the meeting between President Zurabishvili and Special Representative Colomina addressed the continued development of NATO-Georgia relations while “the importance of institutional and democratic reforms was emphasized.”
Per the President’s press service, the two highlighted Georgia’s recently granted European perspective and its path to implementing the European Commission’s 12 recommendations for EU candidacy.
In that context, the importance of the recommendation on depolarization and implementing institutional reforms were accentuated.
President Zurabishvili and Special Representative Colomina made note of Georgia’s role in the security environment of the Black Sea and the wider region as well.
Meeting with Foreign Minister
On the same day, NATO Special Representative Colomina also met with Foreign Minister Ilia Darchiashvili to discuss the important aspects of NATO-Georgia cooperation.
According to the Georgian MFA, the two focused on the importance of implementing the decisions made in regard to Georgia at the Madrid Summit in a timely manner.
The two sides also considered the security environment in the region and the “importance of NATO’s unwavering support for Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
Note: This article was updated on September 28 at 13:48 to reflect Special Representative Colomina’s meeting with FM Darchiashvili.
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